


Full circle

by ShippingsandDeamons



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-04-19 18:47:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14243541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShippingsandDeamons/pseuds/ShippingsandDeamons
Summary: Nearly a full year after the battle, life never really returned to normal, at least not for Yu. To escape a strenuous home life, he once more returns to Inaba, this time with a baby daughter in tow. How far are people willing to push to unearth answers some would deem better left buried?





	1. Chapter 1

Dinner was… civil at the very least. Not that dinner was normally anything else, but the relationship between his parents (mother) and him was strenuous at best. Meals, more technically dinner, was the only time they could be in the same room without the danger of things turning into an argument. Usumi was oblivious to the tense atmosphere, she dozed peacefully from her place snugly in the baby carrier on his back. He could feel his father observe him with something akin to worry, in contrast to his mother’s sharp glare of disdain. 

The duty of cooking had fallen to him a long time ago, neither of his parents had learned in their youth so he’d decided to pick up the skill in middle school. Now it had become a safe haven, something he could do and not worry about earning a look of disapproval from his mother. The knife and cutting board clicked as he cut a slab of beef into cubes, dinner would be beef stew. Tonight would end out differently than normal, call it a git feeling, but something told him dinner would not consist of the usual grave yeard silence it normally had. He still wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, with the situation at hand it could go either way.

He cast his parents a wayward glance; dad was reading the evening paper while mom and through some work-related documents. With a small sigh he returned his attention to the task at hand, scooping up the meat cubes and placing them in the pot with the simmering broth. Ever since last June, the house had become something like a war zone, with his mother butting heads with him near constantly. After Usumi’s arrival in October, things had lightened up, if only slightly.

“It can’t really be helped, it wasn't easy for any of us.” He thought sadly.

Really, he just wished that his mother could let go and accept what he’d done, however accidental it had been. Usumi changed position in her sleep, moving her head so that now her right cheek rested against the space between his shoulder blades. His lips twitched into a small smile. He loved his daughter with all his heart, and never once resented her for all the trouble her existence and entitled him. She was his precious daughter; practically his reason for living. At least mother seemed to tolerate her presence in the house.

The chime of the cooking timer brought him out of his thoughts, bringing him back to the present. He slicked off the heat and reached over to cab the three bowls to his left that he’d set aside. He gingerly set the three bowls onto a trey along with the needed number of spoons before making his way to the dinner table. Usumi would be nursed after dinner, as the young girl was just still barely younger than two months old. He set the trey down so that his parents could take whichever bowl that caught their fancy before making his way to his room. He carefully removed the baby carrier before removing Usumi from it and placing her in her crib for the time being. When he returned, he was mildly surprised to find that his parents hadn’t started eating yet, despite the fact that the papers were no longer on the table. He remained silent as he took his own bowl of dinner and sat down.

The three ate in silence for several long minutes. Each of them kept their eyes down at their dinner, not even bothering with small talk. Five months now and it was still the same, he missed before when they’d all chat about their day. Finally he noticed his father had stopped eating, spoon resting on the lip of his bowl.

“Yu, Dojima and I talked about what happened yesterday,” His father started.

He inwardly grimaced. Yesterday had been his third break down in the last 6 months- he was well aware this his uncle Dojima was kept up to date with their current events, but it was still something he’d rather not talk, or even think about.

“Would you like to take Usumi and spend winter break in Inaba?”

He hadn’t been anticipating the question despite the fact that it shouldn’t have been all that surprising. He knew that his uncle was worried about him ever since he’d been unable to his ‘that’ any longer. His mother didn’t look at him the entire time, he attention focused on eating her stew. He wasn’t offended, the action no longer bothered him like it used to.

“The change of scenery could do you and Usumi some good, and He’s told me than Nanako is very eager to meet her baby ‘neice’.” His father continued.

With the proposition now on the table, his father resumed eating dinner.

He’d never really considered returning to Inaba. Not because he didn’t like the sleepy little town or its inhabitance, but simply the thought had never crossed his mind. He knew why Dojima had brought it up; three mental break downs in such rapid succession was concerning, and with how home and school life was treating him nowadays, it was understandable that the man would worry about the mental health of his old charge. Should he go? All of his friends lived in Inaba, but ‘he’ also lived in Inaba. And it wasn’t like his parents weren't aware that Inaba was where ‘it’ had happened.

He’d managed to deflect the question thus far, but that was mostly because the forceful, demanding approaches his parents took made it easy to clam up. Dojima would without a doubt try to coax the answer from him instead of prying it from him like his mother. He was content living his life as a single parent, and letting ‘him’ live his life oblivious to the truth, but the adults in his family weren't of that mindset. What to do, what to do.

Dinner ended in silence, his father collected dirty dishes. With that silent dismissal, he returned to his room. Usumi was no longer asleep, she looked up at him with bright eyes. She showed the telltale signs of a hungry infant as he wiggled a finger near her mouth. With a soft exhale of breath he lifted her up into his arms, it was time for her dinner as well.

“Maybe I should go, stop running away from it all,"

He entered the living room with a fed Usumi in arm and looked at his father.

“I’ll go.” He answered softly.


	2. Chapter 2

“So, he said yes. Okay, I’ll get things set up.” 

Dojima set the phone back into it’s cradle. Despite how late it was outside. He was glad his brother-in-law had called now instead of later. He’d been hoping that his nephew would agree to spend winter break with his infant daughter here in Inaba. Both he and his mother needed some time away from each other, for everyone’s sake. Nanako would be ecstatic, at least.

Ryotaro Dojima was one of the Inaba Police Department’s most dedicated and diligent detectives; once he received a case, he saw it through to the end. The same could not be said about his parenting skills. He loved his daughter Nanako with all his heart- he really did, but after the violent death of his wife, he’d become obsessed with catching the bastard. And his innocent daughter had suffered, losing not only a mother, but practically losing a father as well. She had been a trooper, putting up with his neglect with determination and a smile. Now, at least, he wasn’t as much of a workaholic, and was actually home most evenings.

It was because of his nephew that he finally stopped running away, the boy had not only acted as a catalyst, but had given him the pushes he needed. It was thanks to Yu that this dysfunctional family was back on track. The boy had become practically a son to the elder Dojima, and an older brother to the younger. After hearing about how bad the situation between his sister and her son had gotten recently, he knew he needed to get the boy away. He’d finalized his decision after hearing about the boy’s break down yesterday, the third in the span of 6 months. As much as he loved his little sister dearly, she took after their parents in many ways. He was worried that if Yu spent any more time at home, the boy would go catatonic.

Nanako and Kume were seated in the living room, eyes glued to the TV’s screen. Kuma spent a lot of time at their house, ever since Yu returned home. At first, he was wary of the strange boy who spent so much time around his daughter, how could he not? Despite being a friend of Yu’s, he had some odd habits and often flirted with girls. He relaxed after determining that the odd boy was no danger to his daughter.

“Nanako, Kume, I have good news.” He said, sitting down.

The two turned their attention from the anime on screen to face him. 

“I just got the call from your uncle, Yu’s agreed to come and spend winter break with us.”

He watched with a sense of joy as his daughter lit up. Kuma also perked up, a smile practically splitting his face.

“Is nii-chan brining Usumi?”

“Yeah, is Sensei bringing Usumi-chan?”

He smiled. After seeing pictures, the two had become enamored with Yu’s daughter, not that he could blame them, she was a cute baby after all. Nanako even had a picture of her older cousin and his daughter as a newborn up in her room on her desk alongside the picture of her mother. She acted every bit the part of a newly christened aunty who was ready to spoil her niece. Kuma also wanted to meet the new addition to the family, probably because the concept of creating life (and babies in general) was still new to him. It was adorable to watch really.

Both of them knew about Yu’s family situation, though because of their youth, there were still aspects of it that they couldn’t understand, like how Kuma couldn’t quite comprehend how Yu having a child could warrant so much grief, or like how Nanako couldn’t understand why Yu having a child was so significant (not that either really understood what having a child entailed).

“They should arrive tomorrow evening, the day after at the latest.” He said.

“Then we should probably buy diapers and wipes before than, do you know if we need to get anything else?” His daughter asked.

“No, Yu’s bringing clothes and toys with him.”

 

Usumi had been born in October, that meant she’d been conceived sometime in February. That meant Usumi’s other parent was a resident of Inaba, it was the only answer to the question. He had an idea of when exactly it had happened, but he’d kept that hypothesis to himself. Yu had been tight-lipped about the matter regarding his child’s father, this secrecy had been a primary reason that causes him and his mother to butt heads. The harder his mother pushed, the tighter the boy clammed up.

While his primary objective was to help the boy and keep him from going catatonic, something he hoped to accomplish (but was prepared to fail at) would be to coax the answer of who Usumi’s father was. If Yu didn’t definitively know who, that was alright. Why Yu was being so secretive anyway?

“Yu, what are you afraid of? Or is it even fear?

He wasn’t sure what to think, his problems as a teenager were a world different from the ones Yu was facing now. Back then it was just a matter of rebelling against Mom and Dad while keeping his head sane and his grades up. His sister hadn’t rebelled, had let their parents shape her as they saw fit, was she regretting her action now? He hadn’t asked. At least she’d married a good man in the form of Narukami. He’d gotten the call confirming that Yu would be arriving tomorrow evening. It was a good thing Nanako and Kuma had run off to go do shopping then, early tomorrow would be made up of moving boxes up into Yu’s room before picking him up at the train station.


	3. Chapter 3

Most of the evening was made up of hunting down suitable winter clothes, and rounding up any of Usumi’s baby essentials. He figured only a few diapers would be needed, just for the train ride over, uncle Dojima had undoubtedly told Nanako about his decisions and she would certainly pick up a stock of diapers. Usumi was in the living room with her grandparents, his father had been kind enough to relive him of baby duty until he was done packing. As much as the fact he’d be leaving tomorrow, a Wednesday, make the honor student in him curled up, he was glad to be spending no more time in the city than necessary. Home was a battlefield and school wasn’t much better. Hopefully Inaba would be the much-needed break he longed for.

His hand faltered for a moment, fingers skimming over his old high school uniform from back when he’d lived in Inaba. Despite the fact the uniform now probably just barely fit him, it was still in very good condition. It was a reminder of happier times with people he could honestly call friends. Hard to believe that soon he, Yosuke, Chie, and Yukiko would be high school seniors. How was the gang doing anyhow? Were they all still close, even without him being there?

He pulled away from his idle musing to finish packing. He hadn’t had a true conversation with any of them in almost a year, and besides Kume who practically lived with the Dojimas, none of them knew about Usumi. How would they react? And would he be able to keep his secret buried? He had no worry about Dojima, he was certain he could keep from slipping up in the man’s presence. But if any of the other, if ‘he’ asked (especially if ‘he’ asked) he wasn’t so sure he could stand tall.

“All I want to do is keep ‘him from being inconvenienced by a simple error in judgment, is that too much to ask?” He wondered.

His mother acted as though that was asking her to pull the sun from the sky. He knew she only meant well, and that her upbringing had been far different from his own, but still. 

Finally satisfied that he had everything, he rose up from his kneeling position. Maybe a bath would do him some good. He walked into the living room, greeted by Usumi’s squeals of delight as her grandfather tickled her tummy. His mother watched them from over a wad of papers – probably something business related – with a soft glint in her eye. Mother and son might butt heads, but she really did care about her granddaughter. She returned her eyes to her work when she noticed him approaching his father.

“I’m going to take a bath.” He said.

His father simply nodded as he retrieved his charge from the older man. Usumi snuggled into his chest, smiling sleepily as she looked up at him with innocent eyes. She looked so much like her father. The doctor had said young babies looked like their fathers (as some sort of biological adaption to ensure they would survive or something like that), but it was times like this that really drove in that fact. He cradled the little not-quite-two year old gently as he started up the hot water. He held a finger under the flow of water until he was satisfied with the temperature, and placed the stopper in before stripping. He removed Usumi’s pink onsey before stepping into the tub. The warm water felt heavenly against his stomach and the surgery wound bisecting it. It no longer hurt like hell everytime he even breathe, but it would still be several more months before he would be fully recovered.

He had to nudge his daughter away from a certain part of his chest when he felt tiny hands wander a little too close to a certain something.

“Didn’t I feed you not too long ago?” He asked.

His daughter simply looked up at him with wide eyes and made a second go for seconds. Waving a finger past her lips, she did try and nibble on the digit, an early indication that she was in fact hungry. With a sigh he lifted her up so that her mouth was close enough to feed. He wasn’t empty, but he was trying to put a reasonable space of time between nursing her. Unfortunately she refused to cooperate. At least he was eating enough to keep up with her voracious appetite.

 

Kuma scrutinized over the two potatoes he held, one in each hand, before placing them both back down. Nanako had sent him off to pick up ingredients for sensei’s homecoming dinner, but he had no idea what to get. They normally just ate the prepackaged meals the dely sold. He wanted to provide sensei with a means to make a proper dinner. He began inspecting carrots, proding them with a pointer finger.

“Kuma? What are you doing here?” A familiar voice asked him.

He turned his head to the left to see Yukiko Amagi. She was alone, with a basket slung over an arm. 

“Hi Yukiko,” He greeted. “Nanako-chan sent me over to gather things for a homecooked dinner.”

Then a thought occurred to him. Yukiko’s family owned an inn, that meant not only did they do a lot of cooking, but also saw people in various walks of life. They might have even had a nursing mother or two.

“Hey, do you know what kind of food is best for someone who’s nursing an infant?” He asked.

The ebony haired sempai tilted her head to one side, eyebrows scrunching up. 

“I think so, why?”

“Usumi-chan is still nursing and tonight we’re going to get Sensei to make us a homecooked meal!”

Yukiko’s eyes brightened a little. She knew who he meant when he said sensei, and soon it would be a full year since their final battle. She answered his question, pointing out ingredients her mother would recommend.

“Thanks!” He said with a smile.

“No problem, is Nanako here with you?”

“Un, she’s off hunting for diapers!”

With that he ran off, waving at Yukiko before hunting down Nanako to let her knew he was done hunting for dinner. They would be leaving in a few short hours to make it to the train station in time to pick up their guest on arrival.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd been debating on whether Chie should also be there, then decided against it.


	4. Chapter 4

It was interesting how the same stimuli could affect two people so differently. Usumi found the jolting of the train as it lumbered down the tracks to be therapeutic and had nodded off near the star, waking only to announce she was hungry. The same could not be said for her parent. Yu found that most of the jolt made his surgery cut flare up in pain, unfortunately he couldn’t take any pain kills. The pain wasn’t too terrible, compared to how bad it had been the first few days, he could manage. He watched the scenery as it rushed by them, the green of the grass and the blue of the sky blurring together.

Their car was empty, but that was understandable considering it was a Wednesday – not many people made long distance trips like this one in the middle of the week. It was nice, it just being the two of them. He didn’t have to worry about Usumi’s crying disturbing the other passengers, nor did he have to move to the bathroom when she started demanding milk. He shifted her position, moving her from his left shoulder over to the right, and leaned sideways, pressing his freed shoulder up against the glass. The window felt cool up against his forehead.

In a few short hours, he would return to where it had started. None of them would be the same people they had been last march, least of all him. How would the others react to Usumi? He knew Kuma at least would welcome her, but the others were wild cards; they could go either way. Naoto would undoubtedly be able to put the pieces together, where Usumi had been made and why home life was so tense, unless he chose to lie. He wouldn’t- couldn’t do something like that, he refused.

 

“Narukami-kun is coming back to Inaba soon, either this evening or tomorrow.” Yukiko announced.

She watched with veiled amusement at the various reactions from her friend. Yosuke nearly choked on his drink, Naoto remained stoic as per usual, Chie ginned and pushed her fists into the air, Rize was grinning from ear to ear, and Kanji continued knitting despite the bewildered look on his face.

“W-where’d you hear that?” Yosuke asked. He had been the closest to Yu, and had been the saddest to see him go.

“Kuma told me, I saw him earlier hunting for ingredients for a homecooked dinner.” She replied. A grin broke out on her face. “He also said some interesting things, Narukami isn’t coming alone, I think his family’s coming with.”

Naoto raised an eyebrow.

“What makes you say that?” The detective asked.

“Kuma asked me if I knew what was best to feed a nursing mother, and mentioned someone called Usumi-chan.”

Kanji’s needles stopped, then started back up. She could see a blush creeping onto his cheeks, probably thinking about designs for cute baby clothes or something.

“That is a logical conclusion, she’s probably Narukami-sempai’s baby sister.” Naoto concluded. “Though it is strange they’re making the commute to Inaba while she’s still so young.”

“Doesn’t matter, I for one can’t wait to see Narukami again!” chie said. “I wonder if they’d let us holder her, though…”

Yosuke was dragging a finger over the lip of his drink. His eyes looked far away.

“I wonder if they’d allow me to take measurements.” Kanji murmured.

Naoto shot the delinquent-looking teen an amused look.

“Let’s stop by the Dojima residence this evening, if Yu isn’t there we can ask when he’s due to arrive.” Yosuke proposed.

They all murmured in agreement.

“I wonder if she’ll be old enough to take into the Inn’s bath?” Yukiko wondered.

She had promised Nanako that the next time Yu was over, she’d make plans for them to spend the evening at the inn. Well, even if Usumi was too young for that, she could still have them all over.

 

It was nearing sunset when the train finally arrived. He slung the day back over his free shoulder and grabbed his suitcase before exiting the station. Usumi was still snoring softly from her place cradled against his chest. It was good to be back in Inaba.

“So you finally arrive."

He saw Dojima with Nanako and Kuma in tow.

“Sensei!” The blond boy cheered as he and Nanako ran over.

The pair took one look at his slumbering daughter and began practically melting.

“She’s so cute Niichan, and little.” Nanako cooed.

“Yes, she looks so much like her mom.” Kuma agreed.

“Technically infants look more like their dads, but it isn’t something you normally notice.” He replied. “So, what’s for dinner?”

Nanako and Kuma grinned.

“We decided to get raw ingredients so you could cook.” Kuma answered.

“Dad said you do a lot of cooking at home,” Nanako added.

The five of them piled into the car.

“So, how was the trip over?” Dojima asked.

“Usumi liked it better than I did, the train’s jolting was painful.” He replied.

His uncle grimaced in understanding.

“Sorry, should have figured that 6 weeks wasn’t enough time for you to heal.”

“I doubt you nor Nanako’s mom ever had to make a train ride so soon after being cut open, I’d be more surprised if you did guess the trip would be like that, I didn’t even anticipate how bad it would be.”

“Heh, guess your right, so how has the little gremlin been?”

“As happy and healthy and hungry as an infant nearing 8 weeks of life can be. Seriously, sometimes I’m worried I would be able to keep up with her demands for milk!”

“Do babies normally eat that much?” Kuma asked.

“I don’t know about other babies, but mine certainly does.”

All joking aside, he was a bit glad she was eating so much. She’d just barely had a birth weight of 5 pounds, putting her just above ‘underweight’.

“But I’m glad she is, I don’t have to worry about her not eating enough.”

 

When the 7 of them arrive at the Dojima residence, the detective’s car was in his driveway. Either he’d already picked their friend up, or it hadn't happened yet. None of them were planning to stay for very long, just long enough to confirm whether or not Yu was back in town yet. Yosuke pushed the doorbell. When the door opened, Nanako’s cheerful smile greeted them. 

“Hi everyone!” She chirped.

“Hey Nanako, we heard and Narukami was coming back, is he here yet?” Chie asked.

The little girl nodded.

“Yep, we just got back not too long ago, niichan should be starting on dinner at the moment.” She said, then her expression fell. “That’s right, Kuma didn’t get enough for him to make all of you dinner too.”

“We aren’t staying for dinner,” Kanji said. “We just came to see if sempai was back in town, and if it was alright to see him.”

Nanako brightened back up.

“Sure, you can even meet Usumi-chan!”

Nanako lead them all into the living room. Kuma was splayed over the table, cheek pressed up against the wood, a lazy expression on his face. Dojima was at the table as well, the evening paper in hand. Yu was in the adjourned kitchen, cutting vegetables. In a baby carrier an infant who couldn’t be older than two months rested up against his back, between the shoulder blades. Dojima was the only adult in the room.

“Niichan, you’re friend are here.” Nanko said, catching Yu’s attention.

He stopped chopping vegetables and turned to face them, eyes widening ever so slightly in surprise. 

“That’s her on Yu-niichan’s back: His daughter Usumi Narukami!” Nanako said.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We finally get a preview of who the big baddy here is going to be.

Usumi has many of Yu’s looks, from the same head of pale gray hair to a pair of grey irises that could just barely be seen from cracked eyes. She was quiet, staring at the group with sleepy eyes alight with curiosity. Yu resumed cutting vegetables, but the grip he had on the knife was tighter.

“Daughter? Usumi’s his daughter?” Yukiko said what everyone was thinking.

“… Maybe I don’t need to take those measurements, I’ve got an idea of how big she is just by looking at her.” Kanji said.

It was an attempt at an icebreaker, a welcomed one. A smile was forming on Yu’s lips as he glanced back at them from the corner of his eyes. Rize finally decided to waltz on up to the baby and began cooing.

“Aww, aren’t you just the cutest? How old is she sempai?” She asked.

“She’ll be 8 weeks by the end of the month.” He replied.

Naoto pursed her lips. Almost 8 weeks placed her birth date at the end of October. Nanako said the baby was his daughter, but that timeline brought up several questions. Dojima-san was giving her a knowing look. How much did the man know about the situation?

“When was she born?” Chie asked, letting Usumi grip her fingers.

“October 30th, “ Yu answered. “Are you guys staying for dinner?”

“No, sorry,” Yosuke said. “We just heard that you were coming back to Inaba so we came for a short visit.”

The smile Yu gave them was a sweet one, albeit a little strained at the edges.

“Thanks guys, I’ll so you all tomorrow then.”

 

Dinner was ready 30 minutes after his friends had gone home. Usumi would have her dinner after he was done eating. He managed to sit down at the low table without jostling his wound, but getting up would not be as easy. He’d probably have to ask for help getting back up. Usumi was settled into his lap, kept comfortable by a mix of crossed legs and an arm.

“It’s really good, Niichan.” Nanako praised.

“Yeah, maybe we should cot back on the store-bought stuff and just let you cook for the rest of winter break.” Dojima agreed between mouthfuls.

“I wouldn’t mind doing that.” He replied.

Cooking had been a form a form of therapy and relaxation for the longest time. Before coming to Inaba the first time, it had been re-release the loneliness that came with having two working parents. After the reveal in June, it had become a way to take a break from all the trees in his life. Cooking gave him a form of control in his life, a sense of stability.

In Inaba he didn’t need such a foundation to relax and distress, but it would be a welcomed comfort. Some happiness to carry over from the mess that had been the last 6 months of his life. Though, maybe this time around he might need to seek solace in cooking.

He’d seen the look in Naoto’s eyes, and how she’d critically analyzed what he’d said in regards to Usumi’s age and birth date. Right now she and the rest of his friends were operating under the assumption that he was Usumi’s “Father”. Only problem was that it didn’t work well on the timeline, all things considered. Eventually she’d start inquiring into things like who the mother was. Things that required different answers than what logic could provide on its own.

He wouldn’t dare attempt at lying to his friends, any of them. They were too precious to him to even consider doing something like that to them. He’d just deflect what questions he could for the time being, and except that his guards would eventually crumble away. Eventually they'ed realize what his family already knew, had seen, about his relationship with Usumi. Then they would start pursuing the same question everyone else was.

Who is the father? He could only pray he’d keep “him” in the dark. It was unlikely “he” was like that. Sometimes he’d wonder how “he” would react to knowing “he” was a father, to a daughter no less, but it meant nothing if he was determined to keep it a secret to the grave.

He was the first to finish eating, had been so lost in thought he hadn’t noticed until he’d bitten down on an empty fork, his plate empty. Like he suspected, sitting had been the easy part and getting up would require assistance. His was slower in the healing process, and the train ride hadn’t done him any favors.

“Can… Can someone help me up?” He asked softly.

Kuma was chattering on about something as he helped him up.

“Thanks.”

“No problem Sensei!”

He was a bit bashful about feeding Usumi in front of others, so he always did it alone, either in his own room or in a place where he would have some privacy for a few minutes. He headed up the stairs and Usumi began pawing at his shirt, stating that she was hungry.

 

So, the fool had finally come back. The zero that every one started from had finally returned to Inaba, after almost a years away. They hadn’t expected this to happen, even if they had planned for it. Well, this way the boy was in reach when the time came. He’d been spending enough time reject, though not outright denying, the truth that his persona had become a shadow at last.

“The child is still so young, I will have to be cautious as I advance my plans.”

The child of a wild card was a precious thing if they had the potential for a persona. Both of the child’s parents had fully awakened personas, so it was no surprise to find the potential in the infant as well. Though they were much too young to manifest such potential, that wasn't what was needed. A mother and child, the former with a powerful persona already established, and the later with the potential for a persona, were what is needed.

The wildcard and his daughter, the two needed. All that was left was to restore said fool’s persona back to its full glory, and that would require the magician. It had been luck that had provided the opportunity to get the one and zero together on that February day. Why the 15th of the second month of the years was a special day was unknown, but it had been an opening none the less.

“Soon I will open the gate, and not even god can stop me then.”


End file.
